It's a ceremony Robert De Niro and superchef Nobu Matsuhisa have performed often: Using wooden mallets to break the seal of a five-gallon barrel of sake – a festive gesture they've employed to inaugurate each of their Nobu restaurants spread throughout the globe.

As traditions go, this one never gets old, De Niro said. But he also suggested they might change up how to smash into that sake barrel in the future. "We're going to start doing a karate chop," he joked.

Hey, if anyone can do it, the Oscar-winning Raging Bull can. Or maybe we should call him the Godfather of this particular brand of posh hospitality.

For De Niro and chef Nobu, who forged a culinary allegiance when they partnered (along with Meir Teper) for their first Nobu restaurant in New York in 1994, Nobu was an incredibly smart business investment. Matsuhisa's fusion cuisine is now much copied and he gave the culinary world a signature dish of undeniable perfection: black cod in miso. Today there are 39 Nobu restaurants around the world, from Miami to Milan, Perth to Dubai; and a growing Nobu hotel business as well.

Those expansionist plans for the partners keep them busy. The Houston party was just the middle stop on a day that began with a groundbreaking for a Nobu Hotel and Restaurant project in Atlanta and ended in Las Vegas where they were set to attend the five-year-anniversary party for their Sin City hotel and restaurant. That schedule gave them just enough time to tap some sake and mingle with invited guests at Nobu Houston.

There was no time to take in H-town at all, Matsuhisa conceded. But he said that Nobu Houston will undoubtedly flourish because it's concept (a blending of Japanese and Peruvian cuisines) has stood the test of time.

"My concept is using the best product and cook with great skill. That creates a good energy – a passion," Matsuhisa said.

"I don't see anyone who tastes the food wouldn't like it," De Niro added. "It has a magic to it."

It's a sorcery that has made Nobu a brand with international appeal – Hollywood-fueled glamour and culinary pizzazz. And one that works for Houston, Matsuhisa said: "Houston is a big city. People understand the quality of the food."

That food – along with champagne, cocktails and sake – flowed at the party where guests enjoyed yellowtail sashimi skewers, tuna tartar with caviar and wagyu beef tacos.

Thursday's party fell on a night where most of Houston was glued to the pivotal Astros game. De Niro doesn't follow baseball; Matsuhisa is rooting for the Dodgers. For the lucky few invited to the Nobu party, Thursday might have been a thrilling high, tempered immediately by the ugly truth that the Astros would not be going to the World Series. It's going to take a lot of sake kegs to erase that hurt.

Greg Moragowrites about food for the Houston Chronicle. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter. Send him news tips at greg.morago@chron.com. Hear him on our BBQ State of Mind podcast to learn about Houston and Texas barbecue culture.